ICP has published a (double) book about
a variety of inner city-relevant topics, including racism,
environmental and otherwise - click here for
sample chapters, here for
an interactive map,
here
for fast ordering
and
delivery, and here for
other ordering
information. CBS
MarketWatch of April 23, 2004, says the
the novel has "some very funny moments," and that the
non-fiction mixes "global statistics and first-person
accounts." The Washington
Post
of March 15, 2004, calls Predatory Bender: America in
the Aughts "the first novel about predatory lending;" the
London
Times of April 15, 2004, "A Novel Approach," said it "has
a cast of colorful characters." See
also, "City
Lit: Roman a Klepto [Review of ‘Predatory Bender’]," by
Matt Pacenza, City Limits, Sept.-Oct. 2004. The Pittsburgh
City Paper says the 100-page afterword makes the
"indispensable point that predatory lending is now being
aggressively exported to the rest of the globe," and opines that
that the "novel Predatory Bender: A Story of Subprime
Finance may, in fact, be the first great American lending
malfeasance novel" including "low-level loan sharks,
class-action lawyers, corporate bigwigs, hired muscle, corrupt
politicians, Iraq War veterans, Wall Street analysts, reporters
and one watchdog with a Web site." And environmental
justice too! Click here
for that
review; for or with more information, contact us.

March
19, 2018

India,
Tamil Nadu:
CHENNAI: The
state
pollution
control board
is yet to give
its nod for
the
India-based
Neutrino
project that
is proposed to
come up at
Pottipuram
village in
Uthamapalayam
taluk in Theni
district.A
senior
official from
the TN
pollution
control board
(PCB) said
that
considering
this as a
special case,
the Union
ministry of
environment,
forests and
climate change
had issued the
environmental
clearance for
the project a
couple of days
ago....

UNITED NATIONS,
March 5 – When UN Secretary General Antonio
Guterres re-appointed Michael Bloomberg as UN
climate change envoy on March 5, nearly two
dozen media went up to the UN's 38th floor for
the press encounter. But Guterres' spokesman
Stephane Dujarric had clearly chosen the
questions in advance, calling on Agence France
Presse and then another media whom he was heard
calling by cell phone just before the press
encounter. The questions and Bloomberg's remarks
were directed at Trump, clearly the elephant in
the room. At the end, since this should not be
pre-scripted theater, Inner City Press asked if
oil companies likeCEFCChina
Energy should be in the UN Global Compact and UN
ECOSOC, in which CEFC remains in consultative
status months after the indictment of its UN
representative Patrick Ho, while buying stakes
in oil companies. This was not answered.
Periscopehere.Back
on February 28 when Guterres met Egypt's new
Ambassador Mohamed Fathi Ahmed Edrees, Inner
City Press went through the UN's tourist
entrance and then UN Security on the 37th floor
to cover it. Still, before Guterres expressed
his warm regards for Sisi, who is arresting all
opponents, the UN Security officer who has
already checked Inner City Press' microphone
told it it could not record audio. This is
censorship, and it isongoing-
they have not answered a petition with thousands
of signatures. Meanwhile Guterres and his Global
Communicator Alison Smale have purported to
assign Inner City Press' long time UN work space
to Sisi's no show state media, Sanaa Youssef of
Akhbar al Yom. We'll have more on this.March
5, 2018

UNITED
NATIONS, March 2 – Even on the environment, the
UN's last refuge as it fails under Antonio
Guterres on conflict prevention and
anti-corruption, the UN is in decay. UN
Environment, the re-branded UNEP, is paying over
EUR 500,000 in a (reverse) corporate partnership
with Volvo Ocean Races, see below. Guterres'
deputy Amina J. Mohammed has refused Press
questions since November on her role in signing
4000 certificates to export from Nigeria and
Cameroon endangered rosewood already in China.
Guterres, Mohammed and Alison Smale's only
response has been to censor
and continue to restrict the Press which
asks, despite 5000 signature petition,
UNanswered. Now whistleblowers in UNEP have
written to Guterres, and exclusively sent a copy
and documents to Inner City Press on UNEP mis
management, harassment and misuse of government
resources. Who authorized UNEP to spend EUR
500,000 in a mis-named corporate partnership
with Volvo Ocean Races? Before today publishing
the documents, Innr City Press on March 1 asked
Guterres' spokesman Stephane Dujarric about it,
video here,
UN
transcript here:
and below. Dujarric did not explain, then or for
the rest of the day; he said he hadn't spoken
with Guterres about it. Oh. Inner City Press is
today publishing in full, on Scribd
and Patreon,
the agreement with Volvo Ocean Races signed by
Erik Solheim, here,
and the EUR 500,000 agreement signed by UNEP's
Lisa Emilia Svensson, here
and
here. This UN agency is paying for "public
appearances by Dee Caffari and the crew" -- Ms.
Caffari is a British sailor -- and for
"hospitality activities." It's a new low. On
March 2, Inner City Press again asked Guterres'
spokesman Dujarric about it, from the UN transcript:
Inner City Press: I had asked you yesterday
about UNEP [United Nations Environment
Programme], and I've seen… seen it published its
agreement with Volvo Ocean Races, and it seems
as… as I asked you yesterday, it's actually not
dollars; it's euros. From some 518,000 €
paid by UNEP for this corporate partnership, so
many people that I've spoken to think it's
weird. They thought a corporate
partnership is the corporation is helping the
UN, not the UN helping the corporations.
Spokesman: There are… there are different
kinds of partnerships. I think the point
is that the leadership at UNEP has followed all
the rules and regulations. If people… if
people feel there is… there's anything untoward,
there are all sorts of mechanisms for people to…
to express… to express those sentiments, but I
think the question… the detailed questions as to
the partnership are questions you need to raise
to UNEP. Inner City Press: Because one of
the budget lines is “personal appearance by Dee
Caffari”, who I had not heard of, but it turns
out she's a big British sailor or
yachtswoman. Since the public sees
celebrities or various extraordinary individuals
sometimes speaking in favor of the UN, if you're
being paid, is there some way to know who's
being paid, who's not being paid?
Spokesman: "I don't… I don't know… you're
jumping a couple of steps ahead. I don't
know the details of the partnership. I
think you need to ask UNEP." From the March 1 UN
transcript: Inner City Press: I also wanted to
ask you about UNEP (United Nations Environment
Programme). Whistleblowers there
have alleged a number of irregularities, but the
one that caught my eye and I've published has to
do with the allegation is that UNEP, which
claims under Mr. [Erik] Solheim to have a number
of corporate partnerships is, in fact, in some
cases paying the corporation for the
partnership. I.e., it's not a partnership
like, you know, Barcelona Football Club with
UNICEF, where they pay. In this case,
they're alleged that, under Mr. Solheim, the UN
Environment, as it's now called, is paying
$500,000 to Volvo Ocean Races. And I
wanted to know is it… one, I don't know if it's
true, but they work there and they have a lot of
names and a lot of information. Spokesman:
I think you can ask those questions directly of
UNEP. I have no doubt that Mr. Solheim is
operating and running the agency in accordance
to all relevant rules and regulations. Inner
City Press: Did the Secretary-General receive
this e-mail? Because it was sent out as a
cri de coeur of the people who work
there, saying… Spokesman: I have not
spoken to him about it." Why not? Here's from
what Solheim as written: "Dear colleagues, You
may have received or heard about an anonymous
email sent to me this week and copied to many.
It consists of slander, rumors and false
allegations. Worse, the message contains
unfounded attacks on many good colleagues
working hard for UN Environment. This is
unacceptable. We must strive for openness."

February 26,
2018

"Minnesota
initially sued
3M for $5
billion in
damages for
contaminating
the
groundwater of
tens of
thousands of
east metro
residents. On
Tuesday, the
state settled
for $850
million.

While state
officials
cheered the
size
settlement and
benefits to
residents in
east metro,
Oliaei
believes it
may be too
small. "It's a
bit
disappointing,"
Olia esaid"

February
19, 2018

“We are
considering
public
transport free
of charge in
order to
reduce the
number of
private cars,”
three
ministers
including the
environment
minister,
Barbara
Hendricks,
wrote to the
EU environment
commissioner
Karmenu Vella.
“Effectively
fighting air
pollution
without any
further
unnecessary
delays is of
the highest
priority for
Germany,”

February
12, 2018

From
Ghana: The
Headmistress
of Osudoku
Senior High
Technical
School in the
Greater Accra
Region,
Sylvia Baaba
Yankey, has
confirmed to
Citi News that
the school has
been shutdown
temporarily
because they
can no longer
endure harmful
smoke emitted
by a
toiletries and
plastics
manufacturing
Chinese
company close
to the school.According
to her, the
pollution from
the company
has worsened
such that they
had no option
than to send
the students
home for
health and
safety
reasons."

UNITED
NATIONS, January 31 – A Climate Risk event was
held at the UN on January 31, complete with a
delayed press conference with four speakers.
Inner City Press asked them about the role of
the UN, not just as a venue but as an actor,
with a Deputy Secretary General Amina J.
Mohammed who in 2017 signed 4000 certificates
for already-exported endangered rosewood in
China. The UN Global Compact accepted CEFC China
Energy until Inner City Press repeated asking
about its role as beneficiary of a UN bribery
scheme to get oil in Uganda and Chad; China
Energy Fund Committee is *still* in Special
Consultative status with ECOSOC. Periscope video
here,
since the UN has withheld its, under UNTV boss
Alison Smale. Among the panelists, Betty
Yee, California's Controller, repeatedly cited
transparency. Fred Samama of Amundi to his
credit acknowledged there is a danger of
green-washing. Peter Damgaard Jensen of PKA said
the UN could / should help emerging markets.
(This is true, but today in Cameroon for
example, the UN only supports colonialism and
exploitation.) Iconic Jack Ehnes of CalSTRS
appeared sympathetic. But will they continue to
blithely provide a platform for the greenwashing
not only of oil companies like CEFC China
Energy, but of censoring UN officials like Amina
J. Mohammed, who helped export endangered
rosewood then refused all Press questions on it,
and continues to censor and restrict the Press
which asks? We'll have more on this - and on
“The Investor Agenda.” January
29, 2018

Bangkok's
air pollution
which exceeds
health safety
levels has
improved but
it could
worsen at the
end of next
month,
according to
the Department
of Pollution
Control (DPC).

"Emergency
measures have
been
introduced in
the South
Korean capital
of Seoul to
combat a thick
layer of smog
that is
covering the
city.Public
transport was
free during
rush-hour as
of Monday 15
January, in
the hopes that
car use will
be reduced.The
measures were
introduced
after the
average daily
density of
ultra-fine
dust hit more
than 50
micrograms per
cubic meter"...

January
15, 2018

In
Kazakhstan's
Temirtau, the
snow is black.
Temirtau has
numerous
industrial
processing
facilities,
including the
country's
biggest
steel-production
plant, which
is owned by
ArcelorMittal
Temirtau.
Multiple
locals pointed
a finger at
the company,
and in a
statement to
the BBC,
ArcelorMittal
admitted that
its facility
may have
played a
decisive role
in the black
snow
phenomenon...

January 8,
2018

In
Nepal, A rally
was organized
in the capital
against the
rising level
of air
pollution in
Kathmandu on January
5. A
campaign
against the
air pollution
named
Swachchha Hawa
was organized
to create
awareness of
the air
pollution and
its
consequences
in public
health....

January
1, 2017

Delhi
is the most
polluted city
in India and
also the 2nd
most polluted
city in the
world. It is
indeed a
matter of
concern as the
pollution is
making
millions of
people
vulnerable to
physical
ailments. This
is a huge
matter of
concern
because this
city has one
of the maximum
populations in
the country.
The levels of
harmful
particles in
the air that
are less than
2.5
micrometres
(PM2.5) are
about
153µg/m3....

December
25, 2017

AP: In
Hoboken,
across the
Hudson River
from New York
City, the site
of a former
manufacturing
plant for
mercury vapor
lamps sits
within a mile
of almost
100,000
residents,
including
7,000 children
under 5.

December
18, 2017

In Nigeria,
"Onitsha, the
commercial hub
of the
South-East,
was the most
polluted city
in the world.
Then this
report that
says three of
our rivers are
among the 20
most polluted
globally. The
affected
rivers are:
Imo, Kwa Ibo
and Cross
River."

UNITED
NATIONS, December 5 – The UN has dodged Press
questions for a month about UN Deputy Secretary
General Amina J. Mohammed signing thousands of
certificates for rosewood already exported from
Nigeria and it seems Cameroon to China, just
before she took up her UN position. Most
recently, after UN correspondents who tried to
help her evade the questions declared she is
being "vilified,"
now
France 24 runs a piece, here,
about the sell-out of rosewood by Nigeria
including that "Chinese businessmen paid bribes
to officials in Nigeria's Environment Ministry"
- without mentioning that the Minister at the
time was Amina J. Mohammed. Instead an Ibrahim
Jibril is shown saying it was before his time.
The UN through its Department of Public
Information under Alison Smale gives state media
France 24 two separate offices in its
headquarters, while evicting and restricting the
investigative Press which has insisted that
Mohammed should answer these questions, even
more so now that the CITES meeting in Geneva
declined China's
open and Nigeria's more stealth lobbying to
close the case, and issued a decision that "With
regard to trade in specimens of Pterocarpus
erinaceus: b) Parties should not accept any
CITES permit or certificate for Pterocarpus
erinaceus issued by Nigeria unless its
authenticity has been confirmed by the
Secretariat, noting that China and Nigeria
have existing CITES document exchanging
mechanism to verify the authenticity of all
CITES permits and certificates for Pterocarpus
erinaceus issued by Nigeria. c) Range States and
importing countries should pay particular
attention to trade in Pterocarpus erinaceus to
ensure that trade in this species only takes
place when Parties are satisfied that it is in
line with the requirements of the Convention. d)
The Standing Committee welcomed the invitation
by the Government of Nigeria to conduct a
technical mission to Nigeria and invited the
Secretariat to provide any relevant information
on compliance with the Convention related to
trade in Pterocarpus erinaceus to the Standing
Committee." So on December 4 Inner City Press
asked UN Spokesman Stephane Dujarric about this
CITES decision. He insisted that all questions
have been answered, and ended up by running out
of the UN briefing room as Inner City Press
asked another question. From the UN transcriptDecember
4, 2017

Entergy on its
idled Vernon
nuclear plant
says
"invasive"
environmental
sampling could
cause
radiological
and
nonradiological
contamination
to spread. The
documents also
say such
sampling might
damage
buildings and
important
underground
cables or
pipes.

More on
Detroit:
in the metro
area,
African-American
childrensuffered
2,402 asthma
attacks and
missed 1,751
school days
due to asthma
per year

November
13, 2017

In
Detroit, protesters
gathered
Thursday at
the Marathon
Petroleum
refinery to
voice concerns
about the
company's lack
of action. The
demonstration
came weeks
after a
federal
appeals court
ruled against
a district
court's
decision that
residents'
claims of
injury due to
harmful air
pollution from
the oil giant
fell past the
statute of
limitations,
the Detroit
News
reported...

November
6, 2017

"Exxon
Mobil will pay
$2.5 million
in fines for
flaring gases
at eight
plants along
the Gulf
Coast" - is
that enough?

October
30, 2017

"The
most air
polluted
country in the
world is
Saudi Arabia,
closely
followed by
Qatar."

October 23,
2017

As
Mugabe's A
Goodwill
Ambassador of
WHO, Guterres
Silent, Echo
of Biya &
North Korea
Cyanide

By Matthew
Russell Lee

UNITED
NATIONS, October 21 – Amid the outrage at
Robert Mugabe being named a Goodwill
Ambassador of the World Health Organization,
the head of the UN system Antonio Guterres has
been notably silent. He heads the system, but
is not providing leadership, at the very least
not publicly. The UN often blames similar
absurdities on "member states" - but this was
a decision by Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
(He's"listening"-
at least he hears, see below.) On a different
issue, when Inner City Press asked Guterres
spokespeople repeatedly this year why the UN
World Intellectual Property Organization
provides help to North Korea for patents oncyanide,
the UN refused to comment, just as it did onretaliationby
Francis Gurry against whistleblowers at WIPO
and other UN system agencies. Several Inner
City Press readers have recently mused that
perhaps Guterres will give some goodwill
position to Cameroon's Paul Biya, like Mugabe
a "long time President," in Biya's case for 34
years. This as the UN delivered athreatto
Inner City Press to “review” it accreditation
on Friday afternoon at 5 pm. The UN official
who signed theletter,
when Inner City Press went to ask about the
undefined violation of live-streaming
Periscope video at a photo op by UN Secretary
General Antonio Guterres, had already left,
minutes after sending the threat. What to make
of the letter's vague statement, "filming and
recording on the 38th floor are limited to
official photo opportunities, and recording
conversations of others in the room is not
permitted. It has been brought to our
attention that you breached that rule
recently"? It's not only vague as to when, but
absurd: once a Periscope is authorized to
start streaming, it is impossible to not
record someone who speaks loudly at the photo
op. This comes two days after Inner City PressaskedGuterres
about the UN inaction on threatened genocide
in Cameroon, and the UNclaimedGuterres
hadn't heard the 15-second long
question.

October
16, 2017

South
Sudan’s
undersecretary
in the
Ministry of
Petroleum on
Saturday
denied reports
of deaths due
to
environmental
pollution
caused by oil
exploration. Residents
of the former
Upper Nile,
who live near
the oil fields
in Palouch
(North),
complained of
environmental
pollution as a
result of oil
production.They
reported
outbreaks of
unidentified
diseases which
they said were
not there
before oil
production
started in the
area. These
include giving
birth to
deformed
babies and
miscarriages
by pregnant
women.“We
found that
most of the
companies
working on the
Oil fields are
not actually
doing the
right thing
especially to
our people,”
Josephine
Napon, the
Minister of
Environment,
said...

“Most of our
people are
dying, most of
the children
are born blind
and most of
them are dying
just because
of the
pollution the
oil companies
have caused in
those areas,”
she stressed.October
9, 2017

UNITED
NATIONS, October 7 – UN Secretary General
Antonio Guterres is on a trip to the Caribbean,
to Antigua and Barbuda and Dominica in the wake
of recent storms. But despite the UN having
dozens of communications staff, as of 2 pm on
the first of his only two day trip there had
been no information much less analysis from the
trip so far. Past two pm, Guterres' own - if he
writes them - tweet:
"People of Barbuda face months of recovery after
devastating #Irma. They urgently need help to
rebuild their lives & a more resilient
future." And the replies to that were largely
about Southern Cameroons, and Biafra, and the
Rohingya, decrying UN inaction. A sample:
"Meanwhile people including children are being
killed in Southern Cameroons by Biya's brutal
regime you remained quiet with no action." Now
past 6 PM the UN has provided a transcript of
Guterres' press conference in Antigua - except
they only summarized the questions, all four "on
topic," on climate change. Guterres as he did
has his similarly one-topic stakeout at the UN
cited the World Bank's loans to Lebanon and
Jordan, on which Inner City Press questioned him
before he was Secretary General, here.
Now he is supposed to speak to pressing issues,
including whatever he may think Cameroon and the
UN's controversial role in the Kenyan elections.
Even as to Barbuda, some independent coverage is
needed. Guterres' UN does not have “pool”
reporting of such trips -- in fact, they refused
to tell Inner City Press for two weeks this
summer even where Guterres was. During the
recent General Assembly high level week, the UN
denied Inner City Press the ability to cover
Guterres' meeting with Egypt's Sisi, claiming
that Sisi's state media Akhbar al Yom would be
“pooling.” But when Inner City Press asked if
their rarely present correspondent Sanaa Youssef
who was allowed in the meeting ostensibly as
pooler would say who was in the meeting, for
example UN human rights staff, no information
was provided. It wasn't a pool - it was a
cover-up. This has been raised to the UN's new
head of Global Communications and the Department
of Public Information Alison Smale, still
without any response. The team, we learn from
gushing tweets, is in Vienna, while questions
about killings in such places as Cameroon go
unanswered. Ah, communications, UNcommunicative.October 2,
2017

Hurricanes I:
"When the St.
Johns River
broke its
banks during
Hurricane
Irma, it
wasn’t just
homeowners
caught
unprepared.The
historic
flooding also
inundated
industrial
operations,
like factories
and power
plants.The
impact on
sewage systems
is well
documented –
and frankly
hard to
ignore. But
Irma’s rains
also flooded
industrial
wastewater
ponds, causing
tons of
accidental
pollution.It’s
not clear if
those
polluters will
be held to
account."

September
25, 2017

UNEP's
Erik Solheim said,
“The
profit of
destroying
nature or
polluting the
planet is
nearly always
privatised,
while the
costs of
polluting the
planet or the
cost of
destroying
ecosystems is
nearly always
socialised."

UNITED
NATIONS, September 16 – While the UN
system's International
Monetary Fund has yet to
announce any debt moratorium
for countries impacted by
Hurricane Irma, UN Secretary
General Antonio Guterres'
spokesman Stephane
Dujarric gave the press a
mere three minutes to
sign up to attend the
UN's September 18
meeting about Irma, see below.
When the IMFre-started
its biweekly embargoed press
briefings on
September 14, Inner City Press submitted a
question
about Hurricane
Irma and moratoria:
"On Antigua
and Barbuda,
and Hurricane
Irma impacted
countries more
generally... will
there be no
moratoria?
What is the
IMF doing?" IMF spokesperson
Gerry
Rice said,
"There's a
question from
Matthew Lee on
moratorium...
on that, I
would refer to
what Mme
Lagarde said a
few days ago,
of course the
IMF has
tremendous
sympathy. She
also said we
stand ready to
help. There
are a number
of options we
can look at in
that context.
At the moment
we are still
trying to make
an assessment.
As a factual
member, none
of our members
including
Antigua and
Barbuda have
formally
requested
assistance
from the
Fund." Oh. On
September 15,
when
Inner City
Press at the
UN asked Patti
Smith about it,
UN spokesman Stephane
Dujarric
cut off the
question saying he
would answer
it at his
forthcoming briefing.
He did not.
Instead, with
a mere three minutes'
notice, at 3:57 pm
on September
15 he told the
Press it had until 4
pm to request
a seat to
cover the UN's
meeting on
Irma.He also
excluded
Inner City Press
from information
about his
"background"
briefing on UN
General Assembly week.
Here's
Dujarric's
Irma e-mail,
with invitees:
"From: UN
Spokesperson -
Do Not Reply
Date: Fri, Sep
15, 2017 at
3:57 PM
Subject: Media
Advisory:
Meeting on
Hurricane Irma
To: MEDIA
ADVISORY
Meeting on
Hurricane IrmaUnited
Nations, 15
September 2017
— On 18
September
2017, the
President of
the
seventy-second
session of the
United Nations
General
Assembly, H.E.
Mr. Miroslav
Lajèák, and
the
Secretary-General
of the United
Nations, H.E.
Mr. António
Guterres, will
co-host a
High-Level
Meeting on
Hurricane Irma
at United
Nations
Headquarters.The
meeting will
be an
opportunity to
draw political
attention to
the
devastation
caused by
Hurricane
Irma. It will
aim to
increase
solidarity
with those
affected and
highlight the
need for
building
communities
that are more
resilient to
natural
disasters and
climate
change.
Information
will also be
shared on what
is being done
at the
national,
regional and
global levels
to respond to
the disaster.
The event will
bring together
United Nations
Member States,
United Nations
agencies and
other relevant
stakeholders.WHAT
High-Level
Meeting on
Hurricane IrmaWHO
expected
speakers to
include:
·
H.E. Mr.
Miroslav
Lajèák,
President of
the General
Assembly
·
H.E. Mr.
António
Guterres,
Secretary-General
·
H.E. Mr.
Gaston Browne,
Prime Minister
of Antigua and
Barbuda
·
H.E. Mr.
Darren
Henfield,
Minister of
Foreign
Affairs of the
Bahamas
·
H.E. Mr. Bert
Koenders,
Minister of
Foreign
Affairs of the
Netherlands
·
The Rt Hon
Alistair Burt
MP, Minister
of State for
International
Development
and the
Foreign and
Commonwealth
Office, United
Kingdom
·
Mr. Achim
Steiner, UNDP
Administrator
·
Mr. Mark
Lowcock, UN
Under-Secretary-General
for
Humanitarian
Affairs
·
Ms. Kristalina
Georgieva,
Chief
Executive
Officer of the
International
Bank for
Reconstruction
and
Development
and
International
Development
Association,
World
Bank
WHEN Monday,
18 September;
12:00 pm –
1:00 pm EDTWHERE: Trusteeship
Council
ChamberHOW: There
is limited
seating at the
event. UN
journalists
wishing to
cover it can
request
special passes
from the UN
Media
Accreditation
and Liaison
Unit.
External print
journalists
must register
here by 4pm
EDT on Friday,
15 September" -
this is, in
three minutes...September
11, 2017

Sign o'
the
times: "The
public is
being urged
Saturday by
Heal the Bay
to avoid the
waters of the
Los Angeles
River this
weekend due to
“alarmingly”
high levels of
bacterial
pollution."

September
4, 2017

Post
Harvey,
"Fourteen
plants,
operated by
firms
including
Shell and Dow
Chemical, have
also reported
wastewater
overflows
following the
hurricane."

August
28, 2017

Dutch environmentalists
went to court
last
week to
demand that
the Dutch
government
take urgent
action to
improve air
quality,
arguing that
authorities
haven’t done
enough to meet
European
Union-mandated
targets.The
summary
hearing in The
Hague was part
of a
crowd-funded
legal battle
by the Dutch
arm of Friends
of the Earth,
which says
that the
government
must do more
to reduce
harmful
airborne
pollution.

August
21, 2017

Charm
city: "Baltimore
officials
agreed this
week to pay
$3.9 million
to help clean
up hazardous
pollution from
a dump site in
East
Baltimore.The
Board of
Estimates,
which is
controlled by
Mayor
Catherine
Pugh, voted
Wednesday to
enter into a
consent decree
with the
federal
government and
state of
Maryland to
deal with
pollution at
the 68th
Street Dump
site."

August
14, 2017

Air
Pollution
Ranking of 32
Cities

City / Annual
PM2.5 Level /
Number of
unhealthy
particle
pollution days

In New
Delhi, India,
By October,
the city's
average air
quality
readings are
likely to
change as the
Delhi
Pollution
Control
Committee
(DPCC) will
start
monitoring
pollution
levels in 20
new locations.These
include two
industrial
areas,
Najafgarh and
Okhla, and
far-flung
locations such
as Mundka,
Narela, Bawana
and Dwarka

July
31, 2017

Another
Cameroon
abuse:
"Plastic waste
has become a
major problem
in Cameroon’s
capital,
Yaoundé
clogging up
drains and
rivers and
causing
flooding in
the city
whenever it
rains.Cameroon’s
government has
been trying to
tackle the
country’s
plastic
pollution
troubles for
years, but
with little
success.Yaounde’s
streets are
littered with
piles of
plastic bags
and bottles
and residents
are worried.Cheaper
than other
alternatives,
plastic bags
and bottles
are popular in
a place where
the average
income is less
than 500
Central
African francs
(cfa) ($5) a
day, and laws
aimed at
curbing the
use and sale
of disposable
plastics
remain
ineffective."

July
24, 2017

Denmark
voted
against an EU
decision to
endorse an
amendment to
the Gothenburg
Protocol on
transboundary
air pollution,
saying it is
being unfairly
penalised for
having taken
early action
to reduce
ammonia
emissions from
its
agriculture
sector.

July 17, 2017

In
India United
Bengaluru, an
NGO, has
lodged a
police
complaint
against
encroachment
and discharge
of effluents
into
Vibhuthipura
lake. The NGO
members
visited
Kaggadasapura,
Doddanekkundi
and
Vibhutipura
lakes on
Saturday and
found all
three lakes
encroached
upon and froth
in
Kaggadasapura
lake. They
also found
untreated
sewage from
slum directly
entering
Vibhutipura
lake.

July
10, 2017

In
Malaysia, six
solid waste
landfills are
found to have
serious and
recurring
leachate
contaminant
issues, per Minister
Datuk Seri Dr
Wan Junaidi
Tuanku Jaafar.The
six solid
waste
landfills are
the former
ones at
Taman Beringin
Kuala Lumpur;
and Pajam
Negeri
Sembilan as
well as at
Sungai Udang
Melaka; Pulau
Burung in
Penang; Tanah
Merah Estate
in Negeri
Sembilan and
CEP Simpang
Renggam Estate
in Johor.

July 3, 2017

In
Tunisia, 100s demonstrated
in the
Tunisian city
of Gabes
against the
environmental
pollution
generated by
the
phosphogypsum
discharged
into the sea
by phosphate
processing
plants. Civil
society and
political
parties
gathered in
front of the
Tunisian
Chemical Group
(GCT), a
public company
operating
phosphate
mines in
Ghannouch..

June
26, 2017

Haiti's
environmental
catastrophe
is made all
the more
outrageous by
the billions
of dollars the
UN has
spent while
NOT solving or
even
addressing it.
We'll have
more on this.

June
19, 2017

So Dell
is
using "litter
picked up from
Haiti’s
beaches and
worked into
recycled
packaging." What else
should they be
doing?

June
12, 2017

UN
Ocean
Conference
Ends on River
Balcony,
Guterres On
Junket, New
Envoy in the
Works?

UNITED
NATIONS, June 9 – As the UN's week-long Ocean
Conference finally ended on the evening of June
9 with a reception on the Delegates Lounge
balcony over the river, complete with a Fiji
band, the Colonel and Ambassadors galore,
including Dominica's
Italian Deputy Ambassador Paolo Zampolli,
the question arose where this is all going. In
terms of the Ocean, perhaps Secretary General
Antonio Guterres will create a new Special
Representative position on Ocean, and perhaps
Fiji will fill it. Periscope video here
and here.
Guterres himself wasn't present, on a week-long
junket to Central America. Numerous attendees
marvels, Where are the promised reforms? Or is
it just more of the same? During the week-long
conference there were few answers on fisheries
subsidies and the substance of Marine Protected
Areas. Throughout the week Inner City Press,
often as the only media in the UN Press Briefing
Room or the only one asking questions, pursued
the issue with ministers from Indonesia, Palau
and the Maldives, and UN agencies which claimed
not to know of widely reported scams right in
their host countries. At the end, Inner City
Press asked the accessible President of the
General Assembly Peter Thomson of the push for
the creation of a new job, Special
Representative of the Secretary General for
Ocean, and he seemed to acknowledge it. Photos
here. Inner City Press and the Free UN Coalition
for Access complained how money was spent
on exhibits in the UN lobby and then the public
banned for the whole week. This is today's UN.
On June 7 when Monaco's Prince Albert II held a
press conference at the UN, Marine Protected
Areas were mentioned and Inner City Press went
to ask him about the MPAs which offer little to
no protection, see below. But as it turned out
at the press conference, the questions were
given to a group which the Prince gives money to
- this was not disclosed - and the questions not
surprisingly were softballs, repeated requests
to defend the Paris Accord and sing the praises
of the Prince's relatives and diving. To this
has the UN descended: faux press conferences by
royals, with the fact that those called on for
questions are fundees not disclosed. To those
the Prince - or his subjects - funds, an
embargoed copy of his self-promotion was
provided (a disgusted member of the group
provided it to Inner City Press). The group, as
the Prince should know, operates to get thrown
out of the UN investigative Press. There was
giggling, and some embarrassing wire service
pick-ups, when the Prince "got naughty" and
ostensibly stood up to power. At the end no
question about Marine Protected Areas was
permitted. There was applause, and the question,
We'll see you tonight, won't we? There will be
more faux prizes. To this has the UN descended.
June 5,
2017

LAT:
"Consider the
American Great
Lakes, where
80% of the
litter along
the shorelines
is plastic.
That trash
doesn’t stay
put — it flows
through the
canals and
river systems
through the
St. Lawrence
Seaway and
into the
Atlantic
Ocean. A
takeout
container that
blows off a
Chicago
landfill can
wind up off
the coast of
Africa."

May 29,
2017

Areportpublished earlier this month
from Environment
America
Research &
Policy Center
and the
Frontier Group
detailed just
how badair pollutionis
in the city.
It shows that
the tristate
area had 92
days of
"elevated smog
pollution" in
2015, which is
just seven
days shy of
the Washington
metropolitan
area for the
most in the
northeastMay
22, 2017

Guardian:
"People in the
UK are 64
times as
likely to die
of air
pollution as
those in
Sweden and
twice as
likely as
those in the
US, figures
from the World
Health
Organisation
reveal.

Britain, which
has a
mortality rate
for air
pollution of
25.7 for every
100,000
people, was
also beaten by
Brazil and
Mexico – and
it trailed far
behind Sweden,
the cleanest
nation in the
EU, with a
rate of 0.4.

The US rate
was 12.1 for
every 100,000,
Brazil’s was
15.8 and
Mexico’s was
23.5, while
Argentina was
at 24.6."May 15,
2017

BBC:
The historic
site of
Buddha's
birthplace in
Nepal faces a
serious threat
from air
pollution,
scientists and
officials have
warned.
Recent data
collected from
air quality
monitoring
stations in
five places
across the
country show
Lumbini is
highly
polluted.
The warnings
have come amid
expanding
industrialisation
near the
sacred site.
It is already
located in a
pollution
hotspot on the
Gangetic
plains.
For the month
of January,
fine
particulate
matter (PM2.5)
in Lumbini, in
southwest
Nepal, was
measured at
173.035
micrograms per
cubic metre.
The reading
for the
neighbouring
town of
Chitwan was
113.32 and the
capital,
Kathmandu,
which is known
for its high
pollution
levels, was at
109.82.

May 8,
2017

From the
UK Guardian:
"Environment
lawyers are
expected to
take the
government
back to court
over its
controversial
plans to
tackle the
UK’s air
pollution
crisis. They
say the
proposals are
so weak they
flout
ministers’
obligation to
protect public
health."

UNITED
NATIONS, April 27 – As Citigroup's annual
general meeting of shareholders began in
Cooper Union in Manhattan on April 25, outside
a protest formed. Casey Camp-Horinek spoke,
movingly; the Reverend Billy Talen began a
song. Periscopehere.Inner
City Press has covered earlier Citigroup AGMs
as well, about CitiFinancial's predatory
lending that robbed consumers and ultimately
helped trigger the financial meltdown. What
has changed since? And what has changed at the
UN? On April 27 at an Indigenous Forum press
conference, Inner City Press asked Rune
Fjellheim of the Saami Parliament in Norway if
that country's sovereign wealth fund is still
invested in the Dakota Access Pipeline. It
sounds like it is: see Periscope videohere. Inner
City Press asked the other panel members if
"new" (112 day) Secretary General Antonio
Guterres has met with the Indigenous Forum.
They both said that he has not, that maybe he
is "too busy." Inner City Press told them
Guterres spokesman has said Guterres will be
back in New York on April 27 (although as of
5:30, his scheduled had not been posted, nor
had the UN's transcript of its noon briefing
gone online. The day before this protest of
Citibank for among other things funding the
Dakota Access Pipeline, Inner City Press at
the UN on April 24 asked a panel of thePermanent
Forum on Indigenous Issues
about the protest and more
generally about corporations
which the UN blue-washes
through its Global Compact
and otherwise. Videohere,
from Minute 39.Willie
Littlechild a First Nations Cree chief from
Canada said he wasn't (yet) aware of the
protest, but that he supported it, that is it
hard to protest at the UN. That's putting it
mildly: the US First Amendment does not apply
to and is not accepted by the UN, which bans
protests andevictsthe
Press which covers there, without hearing or
appeal. But Inner City Press, evenconfined
to minderswithin
the UN has it has been for 14 months and
counting, interviewed other attendees of the
Permanent Forum, and will continue to. Watch
this site.

April
24, 2017

AMA on light
pollution: “In
addition to
its impact on
drivers,
blue-rich LED
streetlights
operate at a
wavelength
that most
adversely
suppresses
melatonin
during night.
It is
estimated that
white LED
lamps have
five times
greater impact
on circadian
sleep rhythms
than
conventional
street lamps.
Recent large
surveys found
that brighter
residential
nighttime
lighting is
associated
with reduced
sleep times,
dissatisfaction
with sleep
quality,
excessive
sleepiness,
impaired
daytime
functioning
and obesity.
The
detrimental
effects of
high-intensity
LED lighting
are not
limited to
humans.”

April 17, 2017

In
South Korea, there's
been "a
380 per cent
jump in nasal
sanitizer
product sales,
a 213 per cent
rise in nose
masks and a
383 per cent
increase in
canned air
also signalled
growing
concern over
the pollution
issue among
consumers."

April
10, 2017

In
Glasgow,
Scotland, "Toxic
fumes from
vehicle
exhausts have
polluted 17 of
Glasgow’s
busiest
streets in
breach of a
legal safety
limit that
should have
been met seven
years ago."

April
3, 2017

Smog
has engulfed Seoul
for weeks,
pushing South
Korea into the
top ranks of
the world's
most polluted
countries.The
government has
issued 85
ultra-fine
dust warnings,
more than
twice the 41
advisories
issued in the
same period
last year. Can
you say,
Ban Ki-moon?

March
27, 2017

The UN was
quieter about
"Earth Hour"
this year -
perhaps because
UNSG Antonio
Guterres was
out of town
but his
spokesman
refused Press
questions to
say where...

March 20, 2017

Police
suspect
Renault of
having put in
place the
fraudulent
strategies
“with the
objective of
creating false
results for
antipollution
tests,” in
order to be
seen to be
complying with
regulatory
normsRenault
has used
“fraudulent
strategies”
for over 25
years to cheat
on pollution
tests for
diesel and
petrol engines
with the
knowledge of
top
management,
according to a
report by
French fraud
investigators...

In
South
Carolina, "Gus
Speth, who
grew up in
Orangeburg
County, is the
co-founder of
the Natural
Resources
Defense
Council. Al
George, South
Carolina
Aquarium
conservation
director, was
born in Estill
and grew up in
Savannah, Ga.
" They
spoke last week.

February
27, 2017

The UN
Special
Rapporteur on
human rights
and the
environment,
John H. Knox,
is urging the
Government of
Kenya to take
all necessary
measures
immediately to
protect four
environmental
human rights
defenders who
have been
assaulted,
subjected to
death threats,
and forced
into hiding
since they
filed a law
suit against a
lead smelter
earlier this
month.
“Phyllis Omido
and the other
members of the
Center for
Justice
Governance and
Environmental
Action (CJGEA)
are facing a
life-or-death
situation,”
said Mr Knox.
We'll have
more on this.

February 20,
2017

Indian
conglomerate
Adani's plans
to build
Australia's
biggest coal
mine may
imperil the
Galilee Basin
and Great
Barrier Reef...

On Green
Group
Holdings, “No
one should
have to fear a
multi-million
dollar lawsuit
just for
speaking up
about their
community —
but our
clients did,”
said Lee
Rowland, a
senior staff
attorney with
the ACLU
Speech,
Privacy, and
Technology
Project.
“Fortunately,
as they do in
the face of
all injustice,
our clients
fought back.
This
settlement
reaffirms our
clients’ — and
everyone’s —
constitutional
right to speak
out and fight
for health and
justice in
their
community. In
addition to
advocating for
community
health and
justice, our
clients also
became heroes
of the First
Amendment.”

February
6, 2017

In NigeriaFidelis
Aden has
linked the
crises in the
oil rich Niger
Delta region
to the absence
of
environmental
justice for
communities in
the region in a paper
called,
“Peace and
Stability in
Nigeria” at
the11th
General
Assembly of
West Africa
Network Peace
Building in
Port Harcourt.

January
23, 2017From
New Orleans:
"The groups
that are
opposed to
building a new
power plant at
the site of
the an old
power plant
will meet at a
church in New
Orleans East
to discuss
their
position.
Meanwhile
Entergy says
building a new
plant is the
only way to
save customers
money."

January
16, 2017

The
call in the
Philippines is
“Makiisa para
sa
#1MBatangMalaya”
(One with
children to
end child
labor) which
featured the
launch of
three major
initiatives to
combat child
labor in the
country. BAN
Toxics in
particular
called for an
end to child
labor in
small-scale
mining.

January 9,
2017

Mother
Nature
Cambodia, a
NGO that is
"fighting to
put an end to
the systematic
destruction of
Cambodia's
precious
natural
resources" has
engaged a
Singaporean
law firmto
provide advice
in relation to
the alleged
complicity of
Singaporean
Entities in
the 'Sand
Mining Scam'...

January
2, 2017

The
EPA’s Office
of Civil
Rights has
never made a
formal finding
of
discrimination
and has never
denied or
withdrawn
financial
assistance
from a
recipient in
its entire
history, and
has no mandate
to demand
accountability
within the
EPA....

December
26, 2016

Eight
more
Ecuadorian
villagers have
terminated
their
relationship
with
Ecuadorian
attorney Pablo
Fajardo after
he secretly
cooperated
with Ecuador’s
government in
agreeing to
lift a court
order freezing
Chevron's
assets...CSR indeed...

December
19, 2016

We
support the
coal ash
protests in
Puerto
Rico....

December
12, 2016

Washington,
DC – The U.S.
Commission on
Civil Rights
offers the
following
statement
regarding the
Dakota Access
Pipeline.

As we
commemorate
Native
American
Heritage
Month, the
recent
protests
against the
construction
of the Dakota
Access
Pipeline have
highlighted
the
intersection
of numerous
issues the
Commission has
investigated
recently,
including the
excessive use
of force by
police, the
civil and
sovereign
rights of
Native
Americans, and
environmental
justice.

December
5, 2016

Princess
Cruise Lines
has pleaded
guilty to
seven counts
of “deliberate
pollution” and
now must pay
$40 million The
ships were
regularly
dumping
thousands of
gallons of oil
and
contaminated
waste into the
water. Alarms
were also
tampered with
so crews would
not be
notified when
too much oil
was
discharged.

November
28, 2016

AKWESASNE
-- St. Regis
Mohawk Tribal
chiefs say
they are
dissatisfied
with
remediation of
the former
General Motors
site, and took
the
opportunity to
address their
grievances
with the
federal
government.The
tribe also
gave $10,000
to help the
Standing Rock
Sioux with
legal costs
associated
with their
opposition to
the Dakota
Access
Pipeline...

UNITED
NATIONS,
November 16
--
Morocco banned
Suelma Beirouk
from the COP
22, to which
she is
accredited,
because she
listed her
nationality as
Western
Sahara, and
used an
African Union
passport, the
UNFCCC told
Inner City
Press on
November 11.

But Ban
Ki-moon's UN
Secretariat
continued to
dissemble and
delay for five
days, while
Ban was in
Marrakesh and
get the
King.
From the
November 17 UN
transcript:

Inner City
Press: On
COP22, the
final
question.
This NGO issue
that went
around and
around, it
seems like the
person didn’t
get
there.
Mr. [Nick]
Nuttall said
his last
communication
was the last
one.
What, if
anything, did
the
Secretariat do
since more
than a week
ago the person
was blocked to
request to
Morocco that
an accredited
NGO attend the
conference?

Deputy
Spokesman:
I believe the
UN Framework
Convention on
Climate Change
(UNFCCC) was
dealing with
the local
authorities
trying to see
what could be
done about
this.
Beyond that,
I’d refer you
again to Mr.
Nuttall.
Have a good
afternoon.

And Nuttal
wrote, "I
answered your
first question
ie we sought
clarification
from the
Government of
Morocco and
were advised
she was
traveling on
an invalid
travel
document. Let
me try again
to get an
answer to your
other two
points."

UNITED
NATIONS,
November 11
--
Morocco has
banned Suelma
Beirouk from
the COP 22, to
which she is
accredited,
because she
listed her
nationality as
Western
Sahara, and
used an
African Union
passport, the
UNFCCC has
told Inner
City Press.

What will UN
Secretary
General Ban
Ki-moon,
slated to
attend, do?

Ban gave in to
Morocco's
demand to pull
out 83 members
of its MINURSO
mission in
Western Sahara
and has yet to
get most of
the returned.

And Morocco's
Ambassador Omar
Hilale on
November 7
approached
Inner City
Press and said
he understands
and agrees
with those who
"have a
problem" with
Inner City
Press, and
that the
parliamentarian
banned from
attending COP
22 in Morocco
was not
accredited by
the UN. Audio
here.

But a document
Inner City
Press has
obtained and published
on Scribd,
here, shows
the individual
has been
accredited by
the UNFCCC.
While Ban's
spokespeople
have told
Inner City
Press to “ask
UNFCCC” and
that Ban's
Secretariat
has been
speaking with
UNFCCC about
Ms Beirouk's
situation
because Ban
believes all
accreditees
should be able
to attend, the
UNFCC's timely
response to
Inner City
Press leaves
unclear if she
will continue
to be Banned.
Inner City
Press asked:

“Please state
UNFCCC's
understanding
of the status
of Ms.
Beirouk, and
position on
Morocco
blocking her
attendance.
Separately,
since UNFCCC's
logo is used
on COP22.ma,
please state
UNFCCC's
position and
action on the
statements on
that website
about Morocco
having a
border with
Mauritania and
a land mass
that includes
Western
Sahara.”

UNFCCC's
spokesperson
Nick Nuttal
responded:

“Dear Mathew,
This is our
understanding
of the
situation.
When we
(UNFCCC) heard
about this
situation, we
sought
clarification
from the
Moroccan
Government. We
were advised
that the Ms
Beirouk was
travelling on
an African
Union passport
and specified
her
nationality as
Western Sahara
and for
Morocco this
is not
considered a
valid travel
document.
We were
also advised
that Ms
Beirouk has a
Spanish
passport and
has traveled
freely in and
out of Morocco
on that many
times. Mathew
as for your
second
questions—I
don’t know the
answer right
now and need
to ask one of
our experts.
I’ll get back
as quickly as
I can.”

It's
appreciated.
First, the
claim that
Ms.Beirouk is
not accredited
appears to be
false. Second,
if the only
Ban is
Morocco's
position on
her passport,
then Ban
should act on
what his
spokespeople
say his
position is.
We'll have
more on this.

UNITED
NATIONS,
October
28 --
After the UN
under Ban
Ki-moon killed
more than
10,000 people
in Haiti by
bringing
cholera, Ban
spent years
dodging court
papers and the
issue.

Now the UN is
dodging on the
assault on
protesters to
the Dakota
Access
Pipeline,
again under
Ban Ki-moon
reflexively
and slavishly
defending its
host country
and main
funder the US.
Inner City
Press got a
credible
answer on
#NoDAPL from
the UN's
independent
expert on
cultural
heritage on
October 27, video here, but from outgoing UN
spokesman
Dujarric on
October 28,
only lip
service.

Ban backed
down to the US
on Haiti
cholera - the
US Mission
won't answer
-- just as it
did to Saudi
led, US
support
coalition
killing
children in
Yemen. From
the UN's
October 28
transcriptOctober
24, 2016

The
Great Lakes
Environmental
Law Center has
filed a letter
serving notice
that it
intends to sue
Detroit
Renewable
Power, the
operator of
the
incinerator.

October
17, 2016

In
response to a
lawsuit from
community
groups in
Texas and
Louisiana, the
U.S.
Environmental
Protection
Agency today
agreed to
re-examine the
accuracy of
its estimates
of air
pollution from
the flares at
oil and gas
drilling
sites.

The agreement
is in a
consent decree
that EPA
lodged with
the U.S.
District Court
for the
District of
Columbia. The
decision is a
victory for
Air Alliance
Houston,
Community
In-Power and
Development
Association,
Inc.,
Louisiana
Bucket
Brigade, and
Texas
Environmental
Justice
Advocacy
Services,
which were
represented in
their lawsuit
by the
Environmental
Integrity
Project.

October
10, 2016

EJ trend
was
acknowledged
by a2014
reportby
the United
Nation’s
Intergovernmental
Panel on
Climate
Change, which
stated that
“people who
are socially,
economically,
culturally,
politically,
institutionally,
or otherwise
marginalized
are especially
vulnerable to
climate
change.”October
3, 2016

For all
the work by
many to shed
light on
environmental
justice issues
in the past 40
years, the
federal agency
specifically
tasked with
that job
“never made a
formal finding
of
discrimination
in its entire
history,”
according to a
new U.S.
Commission on
Civil Rights
report.

September
26, 2016

California
lawmakers
failed to
approve
Democratic
legislation
seeking to
make the
state's
largest air
quality agency
more
sympathetic to
the poor and
minority
communities
disproportionately
affected by
air pollution.
The vote last
month avoids a
power shake-up
at the
powerful South
Coast Air
Quality
Management
District.

Florida:
"climate
leaders from
across the
Southeast
region
gathered in
Orlando to
take part in
Power Shift
Southeast—an
event that
aims to
mobilize young
people to
“demand that
decision-makers
and future
leaders of our
country take
bold action on
climate change - including
fracking....

September
5, 2016

Rest in
Peace: "A
long-time Baton Rouge-based environmental activist and winner of
the Heinz Award for her work in Louisiana’s industrial corridor,
died Wednesday, according to her friends and environmental
co-workers. Florence Robinson, 77, was born in Monroe in 1938,
and attended Southern University as an undergraduate, received a
master’s degree in zoology from the University of California and
then attended Cornell University....“Within a short period of
time you noticed changes in the swamp,” she said in avideodone
for the siteSoLa2050.org"

In and
around Baton Rouge,
Louisiana, "tens
of thousands
have been
evacuated, at
least 11 are
dead, and
property
destruction is
sure to be in
the many
billions of
dollars. The
Red Cross is
calling it the
worst natural
disaster in
the United
States since
Hurricane
Sandy.Against
the backdrop
of the flood
and the
suffering,
communities
across the
Gulf region
are organizing
to protest an
auction for
rights to
drill in the
Gulf."

August
15, 2016

From
California:
"Pushing a
wheelbarrow
filled with
350,000
petition
signatures,
concerned
Californians
gathered
outside the
capitol
Tuesday to
urge Gov.
Brown and the
California
Water
Resources
Control Board
to stop the
potentially
dangerous
practice of
using
wastewater
from oil
drilling to
irrigate
California's
crops.

The
wastewater,
sold by
Chevron and
California
Resources
Corporation,
is now being
used to
irrigate more
than 90,000
acres in the
Cawelo
Irrigation
District and
the North Kern
Water
Management
District and
is slated to
expand in the
near future to
other
districts." And
what did Ban
Ki-moon have
to say about
this?

August
8, 2016

Will
Theresa May's
"shale wealth
fund" in UK be
replicated in the
US?

August
1, 2016

From
Nigeria:
After
promising to
implement the
UNEP Report,
President
Buhari has
approved the
Governing
Council and
Board of
Trustees for
UNEP Report on
Ogoniland
-This means
that Ken Saro
Wiwa and other
sons of
Ogoniland who
fought hard
for
environment
justice did
not fight in
Vain Following
the historic
Presidential
launch of the
Implementation
of the UNEP
Report on June
2, 2016, in
Bodo, Rivers
State,
President
Buhari has
approved the
composition of
the Governing
Council and
Board of
Trustees, key
elements of
the governance
structure
required for
the Clean up
of Ogoniland.
This is in
line with Mr.
President’s
promise to
implement the
UNEP Report.
The Hon.
Minister of
Environment,
Amina Mohammed
said in a
statement that
President
Buhari has
approved the
inauguration
of a 13-person
Governing
Council and a
10-person
Board of
Trustees
(BOT).

July
25, 2016

From
NJ, 100
Ramapough
Lunaape will
make the
journey from
Mahwah to
Philadelphia
on the eve of
the Democratic
National
Convention. They
don't expect
to make it to
the sports
arena filled
with delegates
and big money
donors...
It's the March
for a Clean
Energy
Revolution,
which calls
for a ban on
fracking

July
18, 2016

So
Newark, NJ
will from now
on require
developers
requesting
environmental
permits to
inform the
municipality
of any
environmental
impacts.
Good.

July
11, 2016

Bloomberg
on EJ:
"Stewart, now
counsel in
Vinson &
Elkins LLP’s
environmental
and natural
resources
group, said
supplemental
environmental
project
increases
could reflect
an effort by
the EPA to
promote
awareness of
these projects
and to
encourage
larger ones,
particularly
in
environmental
justice areas.

Trend Up on
Penalties,
Complying
Action Costs

The average
penalty
reached a high
of $463,576 in
2009-2012
after
increasing in
each of the
previous
four-year
periods since
1997. The
average is
$311,677 in
the
2013-to-date
period."